


Shiro's Birthday Week

by EsperKitty



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: #ShiroBirthdayWeek, A bit of shipping?, Cloneverse, Gen, How Do I Tag, Language?, Past Adam/Shiro (Voltron), That's what I call the universe with the clonebros, clone bros
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-23
Updated: 2020-02-20
Packaged: 2021-02-27 20:41:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 11,894
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22601896
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EsperKitty/pseuds/EsperKitty
Summary: Shiro's Birthday Week! Prompts provided by @shirobirthdayweek2020 on tumblr! Let's give our one and only Black Paladin the love and rest he deserves.
Comments: 18
Kudos: 4





	1. The Past Can't Hold Us Down

**Author's Note:**

> Me: Let Shiro rest!  
> Also me: Angst

Shiro looked at the armor again.

Sleek and fit more like a cloth than armor. He was still unsure if it was metal or not. Ryou had a whole set of mock-armor to use for himself, but it felt more like proper metal instead of whatever the Paladins had.

He tossed it around in his hands. It was light, kept its shape, yet did not resist at all when he slipped it on.

When it was on, it felt...safe. Like a weighted blanket. Or a dog wearing a special shirt during thunderstorms or a night of fireworks. Or both.

Leaning back and getting comfortable, he took a deep breath.

Paladin.

Black's voice seemed hesitant and shaking.

"Black?" Shiro looked around, feeling her presence.

Paladin.

She sounded a bit more forceful, though still wavering.

"I'm here." He got into a more proper posture. "I'm listening."

A flash of light, but the light in the room wasn't even that bright at all. The light came from somewhere inside his mind.

Brightness that felt warm and welcoming.

Blank faces that smiled at him.

Empty voices that laughed and cheered.

His hand was that of Zarkon's-

Suddenly, he was back, his breath shallow and panting harder than a dog in summer. He wrapped his arms around himself, feeling that safe snug fit of the armor again just as it turned into a clinging and too tight straight jacket.

Scrambling to get it off, Shiro managed to stumble into the shower and get some cold water going.

He let out a sigh as he scrubbed himself clean, turning off the water in a matter of seconds.

Paladin.

The Black Lion's voice still mumbled in his head.

"I'm here Black," he muttered back. "I'm here."

This wasn't the first time Zarkon's memories invaded his head space, and it definitely wouldn't be the last. He was going to be dealing with headaches, an annoying buzzing in his ears, and an equally annoying crawling feeling under his skin that no amount of showers, short or long, would fix.

A knock surprised him.

"Taka?" Ryou's voice was concerned. "You okay in there?"

"Nope." Shiro shook his head and grabbed a towel to keep some semblance of dignity as he opened the bathroom door. "What do you want?"

Ryou rolled his eyes and sighed. "One of those days?"

"Every day is one of those days." Shiro wiped his face, trying to ignore the buzzing and crawling sensations. "Your point?"

"Okay Snippy The Scorpion," Ryou huffed and jerked a thumb over his shoulder. "My turn. Out."

Lovingly but roughly, Shiro was pushed out of the bathroom and he heard the water turning back on. Taking another deep breath, he got dressed and decided to get some exercise in before the rest of the Paladins got up for training that day, despite not liking how the armor was fitting now.

I'm a Paladin of Voltron. Shiro told himself. I'm the calm and collected head-

Monster.

A different voice, not his or Black's echoed.

Unfit.

Broken.

Shiro shook his head.

"I'm a Paladin of Voltron." Shiro repeated. "I'm the calm and collected head of Voltron."

Unfit.

Broken.

Monster.

Unfit.

Broken.

Monster.

"I'm a Paladin of Voltron." Shiro gulped. "I'm a Paladin of Voltron. I'm-"

"The best big brother ever and totally not a pain in my neck with these meltdowns." Ryou had finished his shower and was sitting on the floor with Shiro, who was laying with his head in Ryou's lap.

Shiro's eyes opened, making him wonder when he had closed them, and he saw his brother's face, gentle and smiling, but with a hint of mischief in those steely eyes. "Hey." He smiled back.

"Hey." Ryou huffed, still smiling but a little more tired now. "Double whammy today?"

Both Paladin and Lion were having a bad mental health day. Black was stuck with Zarkon's memories playing on loop both in her mind and in Shiro's, which was again being plagued by doubt and uncertainty.

Shiro sighed. "Yeah."

Ryou hummed. "Food?" He tilted his head.

"Yeah." Shiro nodded and got up, realizing he was now in only a tank top and pajama pants. "Food sounds good."

Try as he might, those thoughts kept his head throbbing in pain, always there as he led the Paladins through training that day. Flashes of memories that weren't his, and some he had no idea were even in his head. The crawling turned into a burning, itching sensation that centered around all of his old scars. He was ready to hit the sack that night when a distress signal sounded, and he knew it meant that they were all getting to bed late.

"Ugh, why now?" Lance groaned as he lagged behind the Lions. "Just go to bed already you dumb Galra."

"Um, Lance?" Hunk more or less whispered uselessly seeing as they were all on the line.

"Oh, right." Lance yawned. "Sorry Keith."

Keith grumbled a bit.

"In and out," Shiro tried not to sound stressed. "Twenty minutes tops. We got this, alright?"

With a tired hoo-rah, the Paladins went on to stop yet another warship from terrorizing a star system and what was supposed to be a twenty minute mission ended up being over an hour as Shiro had found himself fighting the commander in a good ol' round of hand to hand combat.

"Face it Champion!" The commander sneered at him, dodging and deflecting most of Shiro's attacks. "You were never truly a mighty hero! Just a fool playing an act!"

Unfit.

A hard right hook...

Worthy.

Right into the commander's face, making him snarl.

Broken.

Followed up by left uppercut...

Unstoppable.

That sent the commander flying back a few feet and onto the ground clutching his stomach.

Monster.

Black felt like she was right next to him as he held the bayard in his hand...

Warrior.

That glowed with a mighty power, taking the form of a tonfa.

"Your legend ends here Champion." The commander growled, his smirk now an annoyed scowl.

"You're wrong." Shiro felt lighter and stronger than before, as if a fog that had been covering his eyes had finally lifted along with the massive weight on his back, leaving him with a glowing smile on his face. "It's only starting."

Faster.

Stronger.

Unburdened.

Worthy.

Unstoppable.

Warrior.

Finally, they were able to stop and rest.

His armor was a bit scuffed up now, but nothing a little polishing couldn't fix. The stench of sweat, however, was another story. That would need another shower, and despite knowing he'd only take one or two minutes, Shiro was really looking forward to curling up and hoping the nightmares wouldn't be too bad so he could get some actual sleep.

The futon was laid out but empty, and from the shower was a distinct lack of humming as the water rushed on and on.

Shiro knocked on the door. "You okay?"

"Yea-" Ryou let that syllable draw out for a second. "No. You used up all the hot water you ass!"

They shared a laugh, both knowing how absurd that statement was.

"I'll be here if you need me." Shiro said gently, feeling something akin to a content sigh from Black as he heard the shower turn off. "Bad day for you too?"

"As a very snippy scorpion once said," Ryou opened the door, naked as the day he was born, and had a tired smile. "Every day is one of those days."

After a much quicker shower and with his body now serving as a pillow, Shiro had one hand around Ryou, hearing his breathing soft and almost silent as he quickly drifted to sleep.

Paladin.

"It's okay." Shiro whispered, running his hand through Ryou's hair. "I'm here for you." Because that's what a Paladin does, he thought.

He went to sleep, feeling a comforting weight wrapped around him.


	2. Still In The Sky

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A continuation of a Shirotember prompt I did(I should seriously post them here): https://headspacedad.tumblr.com/post/187533361702/across-time-and-space
> 
> In short: Shiro got teleported to the Young Justice: Outsiders universe at the end of S2 instead of what happened in canon because in this house canon is just a suggestion. Oh and both Violet's and Shiro's little poems were ones I found on google. Shiro's: from "The Old Astronomer to his Pupil" by Sarah Williams. Violet's: "Space" by Elias Padilla

Shiro had still yet to make a decision about whether he wanted to be a public figure, like the Justice League and the Outsiders, or work with a low profile, like the League's black ops team simply called The Team.

Until then, he was being bounced around. A couple days with Artemis and Will, where he was also asked about working at Will's security company when he wasn't being a babysitter for Lian. A few days with Batman, who more or less acted like a prison warden who restricted where he could go and when. Another week or so at the Facility, where he could train as he pleased and felt much more safer in the light atmosphere of the Outsiders.

Speaking of training and the Outsiders, he was once again included in their training exercises, Shiro himself currently locked in CQC with Dick. Their fighting styles were similar. Always moving and moving quickly. Feet and fists flying, dodging, blocking.

"You an acrobat?" Dick asked, dodging a kick and countering with a punch.

"Not exactly," Shiro blocked the punch and aimed his next strike into Dick's solar plexus.

The ground underneath them, carefully marked by a circle in the sand, began rumbling and Dick managed to jump back before a part of the ground broke apart with Shiro on top of it.

Quickly glancing down, Shiro saw that Tara was controlling the rock, and she hurled the stone at Forager, who was quick to roll up and get out of the way.

"Whoa whoa whoa!" Conner called out as the rock landed, taking Shiro with it. "Mind your surroundings!"

Some of the other training noises stopped as Violet rushed in to check on Shiro, who had actually landed on his feet by jumping from debris to debris and onto a ledge in the cliff face nearby.

"Are you okay?" Violet asked, glowing as bright as a rainbow.

"Yeah." Shiro looked down, seeing he was quite high in the air. "I'm fine. My armor would be nice to have in this situation though." He missed his jetpack and the little wire grappling hook.

Violet giggled a little. "Do you need a little help?" She held out her hand.

Shiro smiled and looked down, adjusting his grip. "No. I can find my way down."

"If you say so." Violet backed off a bit and headed back down with the others, leaving Shiro to his own devices.

Once back on solid ground, he saw that Dick had disappeared somewhere. Forager walked up to Shiro, which was a bit of a fright if only for half a second.

"Is Paladin unharmed?" Forager had an unsure look on his face as he looked up at the cliff.

"Yes. I'm unharmed." Shiro nodded. "I'm experienced with rock climbing, though usually with proper equipment." He looked around again. "Where's Dick?"

"Dick Grayson said he had a surprise for you." Forager smiled.

"Right." Shiro found a quiet spot to sit down and take in the rest of the scene as training went on as usual. They were pretty good, easily coordinating with each other to pull off some pretty cool moves. Eventually Dick came back with a duffel bag in hand and Shiro's feet barely touched the ground as he rushed over. "Dick."

"Sorry for the delay," Dick shrugged. "We had a little issue figuring out the tech."

In the duffel bag was the Paladin armor, pristine and in tact.

"You need a minute?" Dick nodded over to a high rock.

"I'll be quick." Shiro headed over there. He was quick to get the armor on, putting the other clothes into the duffel bag and as soon as the helmet was one he felt his body move on its own.

His jetpack activated and he shot up towards the sky.

Just for a moment, he thought. Just linger in the upper atmosphere for a minute or two. Just for a moment. For a moment. He can hear Black's voice calling him. The stars, familiar yet foreign at the same time, were pleading for him to join them in sweet sweet fre-

"Maximum altitude reached?" He saw an unfamiliar message, in plain English and not Altean, pop up in his visor.

His jetpack suddenly stopped and he felt himself linger so close yet so far from the true endless sky. He reached out and he began falling.

"Gotcha." Conner's voice appeared out of nowhere as Shiro felt himself, gently, being grabbed and he fell a bit faster as he was dragged down to the surface with Conner.

The second his feet touched the ground, he felt what might as well have been the magma from the core of the Earth shoot up and into his being in the form of a mighty rage.

"He messed with the armor." He saw the popup change and disappear, leaving his vision, though red, clear as day as he glared at Dick.

"Y-" Dick shrunk at that. "Yeah. He did."

"Did he mess with my arm too when I was unconscious?" Shiro spat.

"Shiro, buddy," Bart, a speedy type, came up to him. "Stay whelmed."

Shiro felt an itching in his skin. The armor was tampered with. It was bad enough that Zarkon once wore it but now some paranoid man who fights crime in spandex decided to put parental controls on it as well.

The itching became a buzzing, and it went into his ears. Words became unclear. He couldn't hear what anyone else was saying, be it what might be excuses from Dick or some reassurance from Bart, who apparently already knew Shiro from the future and man was that a conundrum to figure out.

"The air is frozen, there is no light. The vast is overwhelming and unbelievable," Violet's voice was so much clearer somehow. "Unconquerable void."

The red fog was leaving Shiro's vision, and he felt a weight lifting from his shoulders.

"Ultraviolet waves pierce its boundaries. Reach for the stars, pierce the gravity they posses." Violet continued. "Be with the solar winds. Find another place to call home. Everything is out there."

Shiro took a deep breath. He still felt unclean, but less angry now. He looked at Violet, her eyes kind and understanding.

"I'm sorry, Shiro. I really a-" Dick began to say before Shiro raised his hand.

"Though my soul may set in darkness, it will rise in perfect light. I have loved the stars too fondly to be fearful of the night." He gave Dick a pointed look.

There was a pause.

"Man it's so weird seeing you hate Bruce." Bart said, scratching the back of his neck.

"Speaking of, tell Batman the next time he wants to get into my head to go back to med school and get a psych degree." Shiro looked over to Tara, who looked a bit apologetic. "Don't worry about me, alright?"

Tara nodded, though he can still see that she was a bit beat up about potentially hurting a member of the team.

"Dick," Shiro gave Batman's first apprentice a pointed look. "I believe we have a match to finish up."

Dick smirked. "I didn't take you for the prideful type."

"Figured you best get a taste of Shirogane revenge before my brother decides to mess with the Batcomputer." Shiro smirked back.

"Back to training everyone!" Dick called out, and the team rolled out, mostly figuratively, one a bit more literally.

Despite the buzzing in his skin, he was able to fair much better against Dick this time. Looks like Batman only worried about Shiro running, though he wouldn't put it past the Bat to put some other safety measures, like how hot his prosthetic can heat up.

A faint rustle of activity in the back of his mind, something of a push. Violet's words might have hit harder than before but what can he say? He was a sucker for space. Unconquerable void. An untamed vastness, ever expanding, cold but warm with flaming balls of gas that inspired him and others so much.

When all was said and done, he was bounced back to the Batcave, where he waited for Batman in the somewhat uncreatively named Batcave.

Neither of them said anything at first.

"You tried to run." Batman had a certain tone that sounded exactly like someone who was proven right about something.

Shiro narrowed his eyes. "I don't blame you for taking such extreme measures. Did you find any new toys while you were poking around in there?"

Batman narrowed his eyes back.

"I respect that you're trying to protect your people." Shiro could feel anger bubbling again inside of him. "I would have been happy to share this technology with you if you had just asked."

"There were coordinates hidden in the coding in your arm." Batman walked forward.

"Don't know what it would be in this reality but in mine, there-" he paused. "Was a secret base."

"Was." Batman's eyebrow twitched.

Shiro clenched his fists and walked away.

His room wasn't much, still bare of any personal affects, big or small. He opened a book, one of his two forms of entertainment, and halfheartedly tried to immerse himself in the words on the page.

The space advancement of this reality's Earth were still in its early stages, not even past the moon yet. The Watchtower was the Justice League's, Mars had its own people, and everything after that was officially the Green Lantern Corps' problem, occasionally with the League intervening.

He put the book down and let his mind wander, half hoping to tap into the Astral Plane and see if anyone was there. He wondered what Krypton was like. Wondered if Allura and Coran would like to have some solidarity in their grief with another person who lost his home planet. He wondered about Violet's words.

Find another place to call home.

What was home? He asked himself.

Was it the plot of land that had a little two story house that he held a key to? A house that held physical mementos of his life up until that fateful mission to Kerberos?

No, he figured. A key, some knick knacks, and photos didn't feel like a home anymore, especially when he knew that it'd feel a lot emptier now, and this plot of land wasn't anything like home.

Was it where his heart was? With the people he cared about and who he wanted to protect, knowing they'd do the same for him?

Yes, he felt his chest tighten. That was home. Where Keith and Ryou were, almost always in arms reach. Where he can spend a night watching Lance play his video game. Where Hunk can gently tell him that he failed at cooking once again and help him clean up. Where he can assure Pidge that her brother and father were still alive somewhere. Where Coran would tell stories of his good old but not too old days. Where Allura, strong and kind, would still look longingly at the little hologram of her parents and pretend she wasn't until Shiro convinced her that it was okay.

But he found himself caring about the Outsiders as well. He knew Tara had been having family trouble lately, which was all he was told. He knew Forager was more or less unwelcome on his home planet now. He knew that the meta humans were facing discrimination and exploitation of their powers. He knew so much and wanted to help, but he had to get back to the Paladins as soon as he could.

Shiro sighed, wiping his face. Based on the pattern he'd seen so far, he'd be bounced to Will and Artemis in a couple days, and until then he had to endure the strictest set of rules he'd ever had in his life.

"Alright," Shiro muttered to himself and sat up. "Enough of the pity party. We got things to do."


	3. Dry Your Eyes Now Baby

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One of my earliest fics I submitted to headspacedad comes back with a vengeance. headspacedad.tumblr.com/post/162592322962/wings-made-of-hope-and-stardust
> 
> The prompt was "family" and I had a lot of different ideas but then I remembered a certain detail and the more I wrote with this detail in mind the more I loved the idea. Enjoy! This is also why I added the "shipping?" tag haha
> 
> Also I should probably work on this habit of writing fics that connect to each other that are scattered to the winds, like Cloneverse, which started on Shirotember and has some entries in Hunkuary but sorta needs it's own thing because I HAVE IDEAS

Shiro was doing a bit more paperwork, thankfully it was only a few pages instead of stacks upon stacks that he finally managed to conquer.

A few of the little brothers were doing their own things, though Doc had mysteriously disappeared somewhere. He didn't think much of it though, Doc had been doing lots of work lately and deserved a good rest, so Shiro wasn't too worried about him.

"So if the Arusians and the Bo-Kols form a trade network with the Dovas-" he muttered, tapping his pen against his chin. "Havlar's pretty uncooperative though, warrior pride and what not."

Multiple thuds and banging sounds occurred outside and just as Shiro stood to see what was going on the door opened and in scrambled Jack, looking more frazzled than Shiro had ever seen or imagined him.

"Jack?" Shiro asked, accidentally making him flinch when he moved a bit too fast. "What's wrong?"

"Pfft-" Jack sputtered as he flailed and fidgeted trying to put on his usual calm attitude. "Wrong? Me? N-nothing's wrong. Everything's fine-just fine! Mom's definitely not here on a rampage to see her long lost baby boys."

Shiro blinked.

"You got any snacks?" Jack asked, now looking around.

"Wait 'mom'?" Shiro's eyes went wide. "As in, our mom? Mom mom?"

"The woman who gave birth to you and Ryou, thereby making the whole universe that much more annoying to live in, yes." Jack groaned. "She already got Ryou by the way. He's been grounded for a thousand years."

Shiro's head started swirling. His mother was here. His mother, Tsukiko Shirogane, was at the Galaxy Garrison going full Mama Bear on anyone and everyone until she found her children.

"And the others?"

"Odin's keeping her distracted by making her baby Hoshi for a bit but we don't know how long that's gonna last." Jack replied as he sat on the couch, ruffling his hair. "I know your memories aren't exactly my memories but I don't remember her having claws."

"You know what she's capable of-" Shiro argued.

"I think she can beat Allura in an arm wrestling contest-" Jack interrupted.

"So excuse me while I finish this cup of coffee and draft a speech about how I should not be grounded for a thousand years or more." Shiro tossed aside the other papers, pulling up a notepad and chugged the rest of the coffee. "Alright! How should I start this?"

"Uh no," Jack snatched the notepad. "You're gonna go out there right now and save us from the terror that is Tsukiko The Raging Tsunami."

Shiro groaned. As much as he wanted to see his mother, and truly he did want to see her and tell her how much he loved her, how much he missed her, and just how much she was on his mind while in space, he knew that she was going to unleash a never ending lecture on him for avoiding her not just once or twice. Multiple times in fact ever since Team Voltron came to Earth, and he also knew that the overwork excuse can only go so far before it becomes another lecture about taking care of himself.

"You're really gonna make me say it?" Jack spat. "You're really gonna make me do some Talk No Jutsu about family and whatever? Ohana means no one gets left behind-"

"Or forgotten." Shiro sighed. "Alright." He looked at the coffee cup and lamented chugging it just moments ago. "Let's get going shall we?"

"Since when was this a we thing?" Jack found a protein bar, most likely from one of Ryou's stashes, and was already munching angrily on it. "This is all on you dude."

Shiro rolled his eyes and stepped out, jumping when he heard the locking mechanism behind him and to no surprise found he could not re-enter his office.

"Point of no return now." Shiro took a deep breath and began making his way to wherever she might be. If she was with Hoshi and Odin, they might be somewhere outside or in the garden. He figured he couldn't run from her forever and decided to use this time to work on that speech.

Just outside the garden there sat Odin, looking more serene than usual.

"Odin?" Shiro looked around, no sign of Hoshi or his mother. "Where's-?"

"I underestimated the power of memory." Odin's voice, low and in his usual and oddly regal tone, spoke gently. "I could have never thought that the mere sight of that woman would reduce me to a whimpering infant."

Shiro smiled and shook his head. "Okay there Shakespeare, settle down."

"Until today I only knew the facts of what a mother's love was, but to truly experience it," he looked up, sunlight peering down at just the right angle to catch the single tear that ran down his cheek. "I think I can die happy now."

"Please don't." Shiro patted Odin's shoulder. "Where'd they go?"

"With Yama and Kai. They want to impress her with their cooking skills since its not as abysmal as yours." Odin wiped his eye.

"Thanks for that." Shiro walked off a few feet but looked back, seeing Odin was once again soaking up the sun, looking even more regal than before. Smiling, he went to see just how much of a mess Yama and Kai were making.

Just before he entered, out scurried Keith, his hair now slicked back, cheeks a bit red, and his wide eyed panic turned into a furious glare as he saw Shiro.

"You!" Keith shouted as he pointed at Shiro.

"It's me." Shiro couldn't help but chuckle a little. "She got you too huh?"

"They're making a Mom Club now!" Keith ran his hands through his hair, getting it back to its usual style. "A Mom Club! My cheeks can't take all that pinching!"

"You'll survive." Shiro could feel his cheeks getting sore just at the thought of it. "She's still in there?"

"Actually," Keith rubbed his sore cheek. "Ryou took her to see the Lions."

Shiro nodded. "Right." He peeked inside the kitchen, seeing that Yama and Kai were beaming with pride and giggling like school girls. "Sounds about right."

Back outside, he was ambushed by Lance, Pidge, and Hunk.

"Guys." Shiro looked at their smug faces.

"It's your turn." Lance smirk grew.

"Your turn." Hunk and Pidge damn near hissed in unison.

Shiro cringed a bit as he kept walked, the three of them trailing behind him and doing that weird laughing hiss.

At the Lions, he could see a few figures standing by. One of them significantly shorter, her black hair, loose and wiry with streaks of white draping over a familiar light pink shawl that covered her shoulders.

The woman seemed to notice he was staring and she turned and time stopped.

For a long second that felt like hours, they locked eyes. It had only been a couple of years but she looked about ten years older. Her eyes still shined with a soft and warm kindness, glimmering even more with the tears that sprang up as she gasped.

"Took you long enough." Ryou huffed.

Shiro felt heavier the closer he got. Standing there was his mother. She seemed so much smaller than he remembered, so much more fragile.

"Takashi," her voice was as small as she was as she reached out to touch his face.

His voice failed him, he could only smile, but even that was quickly breaking.

Her fingers, with a familiar gentleness, traced the scar over his nose and wiped the tears from his cheeks.

"I'm sorry." he finally spoke but he sounded more like a child of his technical age of six and not like a full grown adult. "I'm so sorry. Mama-"

She pulled him down for a hug and Shiro's legs gave out.

He clung to her, hearing her murmur reassurances, feeling her hand stroke his hair, inhaling the comforting scent flowers.

"Mama-"

"You're home now Takashi, you're home."

As they walked back, Tsukiko could not stop going on about her new sons and how proud she was of them all for their achievements. She had some words for Ryou and how he left her and their father-

"Wait, where's Dad?" Shiro asked. They had all sat down on for some food, made by the ever prideful Yama and Kai, and Shiro did notice that no one had mentioned his father.

"With Doc," Tsukiko answered."Who do you think asked us to come here? You know Doc needs a proper name like the rest of you boys. He's been doing so much for all of you, especially you Takashi."

"I know," Shiro shrunk a bit.

"He almost gave us a heart attack when he walked in. I thought I was seeing ghosts again!" She kept going. "And then Jiro walked in-oh, Jiro, what a wonderful name. You two are geniuses. And Ryou explained everything that happened."

Ryou was sipping some tea, giving Shiro a look.

"Did you get them all checked out Takashi?" Tsukiko asked with a pointed look. "They're all so precious it'd be so horrible to see them suffer like you did." She put a hand on his prosthetic, eyes narrowing a bit.

"Yes, they're all healthy." Shiro nodded. "No need to worry about damn disease."

"Language!" Yama and Kai shouted.

Shiro was about to give them a look when he saw Tsukiko giving him one that could kill. "S-sorry."

Doc came in, followed by another familiar stubblely face.

"Ah, there he is." Doc smiled. "We've been looking all over for you."

Shiro smiled sheepishly, seeing his dad's eyes widen. "H-Hey, uh-" Shiro paused. He wanted to say something else but was internally debating. "Papa."

His dad, quite the mountain of a man with a gentle glow like the morning he was named for, smiled and pulled him in for a hug. "Look at you, all grown up." He said proudly.

There were still tear, but less so. His father, Asa Shirogane, still smelled like coffee and wood, and the stubble was just as scratchy as he knew it to be.

"Now," Tsukiko clapped her hands gently. "About a certain topic you've also been avoiding." She looked at all them. "Which one of you are gonna give me grandchildren?"

Shiro, along with the clone-bros, looked at Ryou in the long second of silence that followed.

"Oi." He narrowed his eyes, making them all turn away and whistle nonchalantly.

Tsukiko's smile turned a bit devilish. "Ah, I see. It's that Romelle girl isn't it?"

"Mom please-" Ryou was blushing.

"Totally." Yama said while Kai nodded.

"Very much so." Odin said while Doc nodded.

"They get along really well." Hoshi said while Sora nodded.

"What about Taka?" Ryou gestured to Shiro.

"Keith won't let me spoil him so it's all on you." Tsukiko smiled brightly, resting her chin on her hands.

Shiro couldn't help but chuckle a bit. There was something overwhelming, in the best kind of way, to see his family, now having grown quite a bit, all together again.


	4. The Day We Waited For

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lots of RWBY song lyrics as titles but come on, they're pretty good songs(even if I haven't caught up in like two years).
> 
> Anyways, the prompt was Galaxy Garrison! So enjoy some snippets of Shiro(and Ryou's)life at the Garrison!

They looked up at the building, standing proud in the middle of the desert, knowing their future was inside those walls.

"Ready?" Shiro looked to his twin, seeing that he was muttering to himself, his brain too fast for his mouth. "Hey." He nudged him.

"Hm?" Ryou did a double take, a smile growing on his face. "Yeah."

"Let's go."

First day of school at the Galaxy Garrison. They were going to be learning how to conquer the sky, and almost nothing was going to stop them. Sure, rules and laws would be in the way but then again, some of their best achievements were made with scrap that Ryou may or may have swiped from various dumpsters around the city.

They were given a dorm room together, which was a big mistake. And as soon as they were assigned a third member, that's when things got interesting.

"Matt!" Shiro shouted in excitement.

"Shiro!" Matt responded in kind.

"Four eyes!" Ryou got the two in each arm, giving them both a big hug. "Aw man, this is gonna be so cool! We're gonna run this place!"

"I vote for Shiro to be the face of our cause." Matt suggested. The three of them were supposed to be studying and getting settled in but put three best friends in a room together and nothing was going to get done.

"Why me?" Shiro asked, actually trying to get his stuff unpacked.

"You're the charismatic one." Ryou shrugged.

Shiro raised an eyebrow.

"Socially awkward nerd." Matt pointed to himself. "Anti social dumpster troll." He pointed to Ryou.

At that, Shiro rolled his eyes. "Right." He noticed something in his backpack and took it out. "Hm?"

Matt and Ryou looked over Shiro's shoulder, also noticing the object.

A somewhat scuffed metal lunchbox with the official Galaxy Garrison colors and logo on it, with a sticky note with his mother's handwriting.

"Dork." Matt teased.

......

............

Ryou and Keith peeked around the corner. There, sitting in the break room with coffee and donuts, was Shiro and a person of special interest Adam. Keith in particular was growling a little.

"Easy little goblin," Ryou patted his head. "We're still in recon mode."

"He's stealing him from us." Keith hissed., retreating back behind the corner and crossing his arms with a huff.

"I know. That's why we have to play this safe," Ryou said as he looked back at Keith. "While we want to respect that Taka should have a life outside of us, it is also our job to make sure he's safe."

"Recon is so boring though!" Keith groaned.

"For once, we have to be patient." Ryou patted Keith again and went back to looking around the corner. "What the-!?"

Adam was now sitting alone, still smiling.

"That sneaky little-!" Keith was about to swear when he noticed that Adam looked right at them and waved.

"We've been spotted!" Ryou growled and heard a sound that was all too familiar.

"Guys." Shiro was standing there, arms crossed, eyes narrowed in disappointment and suspicion.

There was a pause.

"Scatter!" Keith shouted as he and Ryou ran in opposite directs, both managing to avoid getting anywhere close to the older twin.

Shiro shook his head and went back to the break room, seeing Adam trying to hold in a laugh.

"Is that going to be a regular thing?" Adam asked, a smirk on his face as he sipped his coffee.

"Yep." Shiro returned to his seat. "At least until they decide you're not a threat."

"And when would that be?" Adam raised an eyebrow.

Shiro sighed. "Knowing them, probably never."

Adam nodded. "Can't wait to hear the engineer's version of a shovel speech."

Shiro tried to smile but a certain bad memory crept up. "You're not going to hear a speech."

"What?"

"No speech." Shiro clarified. "At all. Just waking up to seeing everything you own in neat little piles like IKEA furniture before you assemble it."

Adam's eyes widen a little and he nodded again. "Good to know."

"They're good, I swear." Shiro insisted.

"No no I believe you." Adam looked down at his coffee, looking back up with a smile. "It's fine, really. I'm the new guy, gotta get through some hazing before they accept me into the pack."

"I'm sorry for whatever they do." Shiro bowed his head.

"It's fine, it's fine." Adam insisted.

Outside, back at the corner where they were spotted, Ryou and Keith were once again spying on the two.

"I'm putting rocks in his shoes." Keith said, narrowing his eyes at Adam.

"I did find a lot of aquarium supplies last week." Ryou smiled, sharing a fist bump with Keith.

......

............

"No way." Shiro looked at the new plaque that rested on Ryou's desk. "No way. Is this one of your pranks? This has got to be a prank."

"Read it and weep dear brother." Ryou smirked, not looking up from the paper he was scribbling on. "I am a genuine instructor."

Shiro laughed. He figured the first part about Ryou's story was true. Stumbling into a class and suddenly teaching a class? Yeah, a Ryou move. But seriously considering and even taking action to get proper credentials? Okay, bit of a Ryou move, he knew his twin would talk his ear off about any new projects as soon as he got the chance, and teaching seemed to fit perfectly.

"Oi." Ryou raised an eyebrow, looking up now. "Why is that so hard to believe?"

"It's not hard to believe it's just-" Shiro was still holding in a laugh. "I'm just surprised."

Ryou shook his head, going back to his page. "I could say the same to you ya know?"

"I know," Shiro tilted his head, seeing the lines and colors on the page. "Looking good."

"Fridge worthy?" Ryou asked, smiling.

"Hmm," Shiro looked again. "Nice use of contrast. Ambitious design, sleek yet powerful."

Ryou tilted his head to and fro with pride. "I call her Pearl."

Shiro smiled, ruffling Ryou's hair. "She's a beauty."

Looking at the desk again, he saw a few official looking papers. Ryou knew his craft almost as well as one would know their house or a certain route they take every day. But to teach it, he had to prove himself a bit more.

"Does this mean you're finally gonna have a consistent sleep schedule?" Shiro's eyes glanced over the titles and words of each of the papers. It would appear that Ryou was just about done signing and whatnot.

"If you mean take more naps during the day then yes." Ryou flashed a smirk.

Shaking his head but confident that Ryou could handle it, Shiro left his brother's office.

......

............

They looked up at the building, standing at unwavering attention in the desert sun. Their past echoed in those walls. A laugh here. A meal there. Something about a thing or another.

Shiro wondered if the building had shrunk, but knew deep down he had just grown up. He was taller, more broad in the shoulders, and apparently his hindquarters was quite the sight. Still, he wondered how long it's been since he looked at the Galaxy Garrison like this.

"Ready?" Ryou nudged him.

"Hm?" Shiro shook his head, losing what little he had of a tain of thought. "Oh. Yeah. Ready."

Another day of work, mostly cleaning up some junk, clearing out old supplies, moving in new ones, and getting everything ready for a new era.

Shiro walked into an almost empty office. The furniture was still there, just as he remembered it.

Sanda once stood there. Stood there, sat there, looked him in the eye and told him he wasn't well enough to handle a mission into deep space despite all the other times he'd brought back any crew he was trusted to pilot for.

He sighed and sat in the old chair, feeling it creak under his weight.

Leaning back, he looked around.

A bit of dusting was needed, but otherwise everything was in good condition. He had some odd reservations about using Sanda's things, but it would have to do for now.

Some things would have to be moved out. Put into storage or given to any relatives who might want one last thing to remember her by.

A knock surprised him and there was Matt with a bag in his hand.

"Hey Shiro." He smiled a bit.

"Hey." Shiro stood quickly, almost knocking over some things.

"You okay?" Matt raised an eyebrow.

"Y-yeah. Why wouldn't I be?" Shiro shrugged and tried to smile, only to get a suspicious look of doubt from Matt. "That obvious?"

"I can read you like a book Shirogane." Matt shook his head. "We spent a long long time as roommates, remember?"

"Yeah." Shiro sighed and nodded, rubbing the back of his neck.

There was a bit of silence as the two shuffled a bit.

"It's funny, you know." Matt shrugged.

"What?" Shiro tilted his head.

"You're running this place. You're the face of our cause." Matt explained. "Just like we talked about back then."

Shiro smiled and huffed, shaking his head in disbelief. "Of course. Why is it that a lot of things from my past are coming back to bite me?"

Matt bursted out laughing. "I don't know. Coincidence?"

Shiro sighed. "Right right."

"Oh and one more thing." Matt reached into the bag and handed Shiro a very familiar lunch box, smiling menacingly.

"Dork." Shiro nudged him, smiling at the faded colors of the lunchbox.


	5. Back From The Dead

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> An unofficial sequel to one of noisypaintersong's 300 follower special fics! noisypaintersong.tumblr.com/post/170231009318/oh-yay-and-congratulations-how-about-batgane
> 
> Seriously go read it it's awesome and enjoy!
> 
> Note though, this is a different take on Shiro/The twins and the Batfamily, a bit more in line with Light Catcher where the they were raised by Batman instead of the story in Chapter 2. Sorry if it seems confusing!

Shiro stretched and yawned. He had been up pretty late by normal Non-Batfamily standards and had just gotten up from a power nap. That training mission was bit of a walk through the park, he did regularly take some Javelins from the Watchtower out for joyrides, and wrangling the cadets was a whole mission in itself.

He had barely stepped out of the room when he was met with a motorcycle helmet being thrown at him.

"Come on loser we're going on a field trip." Ryou smirked at him, holding a small package that had a delicious smell coming off of it.

"And just where are we going?" Shiro flashed a smirk back, curious as to where Ryou could possibly be taking him this time. There was something in his eye, something happy and expecting.

"You'll see." Ryou replied as the two made their way downstairs and to the garage.

Another night in Gotham, somewhat foggy but mostly cool. As Gotham's city skyline came closer and closer, Shiro just couldn't hold in his excitement.

"Okay, come on, tell me, where are we going?" Shiro said as they weaved through some small side streets and a few alleys.

"You'll see." Ryou said again.

"Okay," Shiro nodded,holding tight as he looked around. Nightwing and Robin were still with the Titans for training. Bruce was also still on that business trip but would be back in a couple of days, leaving Gotham in the capable hands of Batgirl, Spoiler, and Oracle.

They stopped behind a building and Ryou was somewhere between ecstatic about this outing and incredibly nervous. It was odd, and Shiro had still been trying to read his little brother to figure out what could have gotten him so riled up.

As they made their way into the building and up a few stairs, Shiro noticed that Ryou had also brought a backpack with him.

At one of the doors, Ryou stopped and looked to Shiro.

"Any guesses?" Ryou asked, bouncing lightly on his feet.

"Hmm," Shiro looked at the door. "Nope."

Technically a lie. Obviously Shiro was going to see someone that meant a lot to Ryou that he would not only actively make time for but also remember amidst all the work he did.

Ryou knocked on the door. "Guess who! You decent?"

Silence.

Shiro looked between the door and Ryou as shuffling was heard.

"You asleep?" Ryo knocked again.

The door opened a crack and Shiro, unfortunately, was at an angle where he couldn't see who was behind the door.

"It's me again!" Ryou smiled brightly as the door slammed shut, the person on the other side muttering under their breath.

"Friendly." Shiro snarked.

"Ah come on Taks," the person behind the door said. That voice was familiar but he couldn't exactly think from where. The tone reminded him of someone, and it sent a chill down Shiro's spine as the door opened revealing the face of someone Shiro never expected to see. "You know I'm friendly."

"Jason." Shiro's eyes went wide.

Standing in the door way, bigger and taller, with a white streak in his hair that was centered around the foremost locks of otherwise perfectly raven black hair. Somehow, that streak of white made those icy yet fiery blue eyes stand out even more. He looked a bit winded but otherwise healthy, though he smelled sweaty.

And in that instant, both Shiro and Ryou noticed another thing about Jason.

"You okay Jay?" Ryou reached out to feel Jason's forehead. There was a bit of sweat on it and Jason was looking a bit pale in addition to how tired he seemed.

"I'm fine Ry," Jason huffed and stepped aside to let the twins in. "Just patching myself up."

They stepped inside, the room a bit bare if not for the alarming amount of gun parts and gauze laying around. Ryou set down the small package and the backpack.

The whole experience was pretty surreal. Ryou was talking to Jason, Jason Todd the little spitfire who stole not only the Batmobile's wheels but also Ryou's heart and took a bit of it with him to the grave when he died. Jason was standing right in front of him, alive and for quite some time if he had a place to stay that looked incredibly well lived in. Not exactly in the best shape, he was a bit banged up but seemed to have taken care of it.

"You really need to be more careful with this stuff Jay," Ryou scolded a little as he pulled out a shiny red helmet from the backpack, which had even more equipment in it.

"Careful? In this city?" Jason smirked, grabbing a beer and tossing it to Ryou. "Hey Taks, you look like you just saw a ghost."

"I think I am." Shiro looked to Ryou, who shrugged and smiled.

"Nah, he's alive. Still don't know how but is that really important right now?" Ryou opened the beer and took a sip.

"Um, yes?" Shiro absentmindedly accepted another beer that was tossed his way. "Does Bruce know?"

Jason's eyes narrowed a bit and his smirk turned into a small scowl. "Nice to see you too Taks."

"I mean-" Shiro was still confused, which was a hoot for the other two. "How are you alive? When did you come back?" He looked Jason right in the eyes. "How long have...?"

"That's a story for later," Jason sighed and took a seat. "It really is nice to see you Takashi."

Shiro shrunk a bit as he sat down. He wanted nothing more than to pull Jason into a hug, partly to prove that he was physically there and not just an incredibly realistic ghost, and partly because he was genuinely happy to see him again.

"It's good to have you back," Shiro smiled sheepishly, feeling a little more sheepish when Jason rolled his eyes in response.

They drank some beer, had some snacks, made some chit chat, and after two or so hours, Ryou was getting dangerously close to his first drunk stage, meaning Shiro, who only had one beer in the whole time they were there, would have to drive them back. Jason had genuinely enjoyed their visit, even if Shiro had brought up a sore spot for his little brothers.

With Ryou officially tuckered out and tucked into bed, Shiro sat by the window to do some thinking.

Out there, somewhere in the streets of Gotham, Jason was running around just like he did as Robin, only this time he had a few new tricks up his sleeve that involved a gun and probably lots of blood. Somewhere out there, Jason was stewing in a lot of resentment towards certain members of the family, namely Bruce and Tim.

And yes, Shiro would understand that. For Jason, it must have been a stab in the back and the whole time the twins had been in Jason's place, Shiro wanted nothing more than to tell Jason everything. He wanted to tell Jason that Bruce didn't just pick up Tim and went back to work before Jason's body even had a chance to get cold. He wanted to let Jason know that everyone mourned him, everyone missed him and grieved for him, that even Tim was remiss with filling in his predecessor's shoes as Robin but knew that Batman needed Robin just as much as Robin needed Batman.

But still, Jason was Jason, and Jason was his little brother just as much as Ryou and Tim were, no matter what he was doing now.

And Shiro could only hope that Jason would keep that in mind.

......

............

"Well well well, look what the cat dragged back from the dead." Jason's voice, to anyone else, would sound incredibly condescending in a villain sort of way. But Shiro would know all of his adoptive siblings like the back of his hand, even after all the amnesia, and knew that Jason was mostly teasing.

"Yep." Shiro smiled, looking away from the Batcomputer to see Jason's little smirk.

"So," Jason leaned up against the table. "You stole my look. Not cool."

"Not by choice but hey, the stress of constantly fighting for survival against alien monsters does keep some muscle on you." Shiro shrugged and went back to typing.

Jason rolled his eyes. "What is with this family and gallows humor?"

"Says the guy who calls himself a zombie every other day." Shiro smirked, feeling a hand on his shoulder.

"It's good to have you back Taka." Jason smiled at him.

"It's good to be back." Shiro smiled back, looking past Jason and seeing a peculiarly placed tool box set up.

At that, he frowned.

Ryou was still in space somewhere, hoping to find someone who wasn't even out there anymore and was in fact sitting back home. And Ryou hated space. That was one of the twin things they did embody, polar opposite views on certain subjects. And Shiro knew that almost nothing would make Ryou even think of going anywhere further than the Watchtower.

"Hey." Jason's hand became a loose fist that nudged him. "Stay focused Taks."

"Hm?" Shiro looked up at Jason, seeing him look a bit worried. "Yeah. Focused." He took in a deep breath.

Focus on the task at hand, everything will follow through. Focus, and be patient, Shiro told himself.

"One more thing," Jason nudged him again. "You can be an honorary member of the Dead Robin Club with me and Steph."

Shiro raised an eyebrow.

"I mean, you didn't die," Jason shrugged. "And you were never a Robin. But you are a birdbrain and we're the only ones who can rock the black and white." Jason lightly flicked Shiro's forelock, much to his amusement. "So by the power invested in me, the Lazarus Pit, and Steph's waffle maker, welcome to the Dead Robin Club. There are no benefits but we do have secret handshake which I will teach you later."

"Sounds fun," Shiro's smirk came back.

"But seriously Taka," Jason's smile was soft and for a second, Shiro swore he saw a hint of that little kid who tried to steal the Batmobile's tires. "Good to have you back and not dead."

For a few minutes, the two enjoyed a comfortable silence that evolved into a discussion about the cases that have occurred and some still open since Shiro's disappearance.

"Tt."

Behind them, the signature tut of Damian caught their attention.

"What do you want gremlin?" Jason asked without looking up.

"I believe Todd forgot someone in the Dead Robin Club initiation." Damian crossed his arms.

"I said the Lazarus Pit, that's kinda relevant to you." Jason shrugged.

"I beg to differ." Damian huffed.

"Then beg." Jason smirked.

With a sigh, Shiro went back to work, listening to the two of them argue and was only slightly concerned about the two of them getting into a serious fight.


	6. A Whisper To The Roar

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have evolved from RWBY song lyrics for titles to straight up just writing the songs into the fic. BUT! This is not exactly my idea, this specific idea was inspired by an author on fanfiction.net, TalkingSalad12, and their Radio Station 77.7 series because we all have those moments where we're listening to songs and all of sudden realize they connect to certain characters. Whether this one fits Shiro is up for debate but come on, that pun though.
> 
> Enjoy!

Another night in the Castle, quiet, dark, and just a little spooky. He was making some rounds, though a voice, whether his own or that of the Black Lion's, told him there was no danger of any kind and no way for said danger to sneak on board without anyone noticing.

Still, Shiro found himself in the bridge, listening for any hidden frequencies or whatever he said he was going to do to keep himself awake and not go to bed just yet.

He pinched between his eyes, feeling the sweet siren call of sleep that would surely lead him into an all too familiar hellscape of a nightmare.

"Ah." He whispered, a sudden thought coming into his head. His fingers moved on their own, and before he knew it, he had tuned into the Altean equivalent of radio station seventy-seven point seven.

It was a silly rumor he had back on Earth. Tune into that station at midnight on a full moon and a song, be it from the world they know or from another one entirely, that reflected the listener's heart would play.

But here, here in the deepest reaches of space, there was no midnight or full moon despite what the Castle's clock said, so why would Shiro tune into that station?

Perhaps he was just that tired. He and the Paladins did just rescue Allura from the heart of the Galra Empire, and they had finally severed the connection between Zarkon and Black. Just stress playing tricks on him, reminding him of simpler days and besides, there was only static. He moved his hand once again to readjust the frequency-

_Armed and Ready_

"What the-?" Shiro flinched as an unknown voice spoke, followed by a sad piano playing softly where there once was static.

_It happens every night_  
_I watch my world ignite_  
_But there's no waking from this nightmare_  
_The stage is always set_  
_The place I can't forget_  
_The hidden eyes that I can feel there_

A female voice singing sadly, the tempo building up before a guitar suddenly replacing the piano, soon joined by drums and other instruments.

_My eyes are open wide_  
_I'm racing to her side_  
_There's nothing that I won't do for her!_

Her? Shiro could only think of Allura, Pidge, and the Black Lion.

_But this is not a dream_  
_My mind repeats the scene_  
_I can't forget it and its torture!_

Haggar said he could have been her greatest creation, and there was no doubt in Shiro's mind that doing so meant being taken apart until every meaty bit of his body was replaced by wires.

_That was before_  
_but not anymore_  
_I left it behind_  
_As much as I lost_  
_Once I'm across I'll find-!_

Shiro had to leave those painful memories, even the ones he can't fully remember, behind him.

_I've found the strength to grow and so much more_  
_A whisper to the roar_  
_No more crying_  
_It's time for me to soar!_

Voltron, but specifically the Black Lion.

_Feel like I'm finally unbroken_  
_Feel like I'm back from the dead_  
_My strength back and confidence growing_  
_Out of my way!_  
_Cause I'm armed and ready!_  
_Armed and ready!_  
_Ready! Armed and ready!_  
_I'm ready! Armed and ready!_  
_Ready! Ready! Armed and ready!_

Shiro looked to his Galra hand. As much as they wanted him to be their little toy, he was so much more than that and now the Paladins were going to put an end to their conquest. And even more than that, Shiro found himself bobbing his head to the beat of the song, figuring Ryou might also like it.

_Remember all too well_  
_My time of living hell_  
_The night my enemy would conquer!_

When Zarkon destroyed Altea, most likely. And on a personal level, when the Kerberos crew were captured.

_But now I've been set free_  
_Lived through the tragedy_  
_You wish you'd killed me-now I'm stronger!_

Ulaz and his sacrifice.

_I am the golden one_  
_Who burns just like the sun_  
_Next time we meet is your disaster!_  
_I'll bring the punishment_  
_Your song will be lament_  
_Revenge my happy ever after!_

Voltron wasn't exactly golden and glowed with a multitude of colors, not just gold. And that glow... Shiro would like to think that they glowed a happy, hopeful, warm, comforting sort of glow. But this angry, vengeful fire that sparked from this song resonated just as much.

_My misery_  
_My agony_  
_Has taught me to fly_

Ever since he was diagnosed, he was told he couldn't do what he dreamed to do. Too risky, too dangerous, he'd be putting not only his life in danger, but anyone who was on his crew.

_The pain I went through_  
_Left me with a new_  
_War cry!_

But time and time again, Shiro proved them wrong. He pulled through, he brought the crew back home. And this time, though extremely late, he was going to find Sam, find Matt, defeat the Galra, and bring them home.

_I'll my live like every day's the last_  
_No living in the past_  
_Best days ever_  
_I'm never looking back!_

He was no longer just a pilot. He was a Paladin.

_Feel like I'm finally unbroken_  
_Feel like I'm back from the dead_  
_My strength back and confidence growing_  
_Out of my way!_  
_Cause I'm armed and ready!_  
_Armed and ready!_  
_Ready! Armed and ready!_  
_I'm ready! Armed and ready!_  
_Ready! Ready! Armed and ready!_

And as a Paladin, he was going to do everything in his power to do what's right.

_Call me sweetheart and I'll tear you apart!_  
_Just call me 'sir'._

Okay magical radio station, Shiro thought, calm down. Still, he couldn't help but feel a twinge of anger-or was it fear?-when he was called Champion, now knowing what that title meant.

_Try to resist once you met my new fist!_  
_Bye-bye!_

Then again Keith always did say that Shiro was always ready to throw down, even in his younger days. Oh god, Shiro thought. I am old.

_Just look at the fire in my eyes_  
_And bring my strawberry sunrise_

And according to Ryou, Shiro always had an intense look in his eye when he went into fight mode.

_It was you who began it_  
_Now you're saying 'goddammit!'_  
_Next time there's no compromise!_

There was an instrumental and it may have been because of the strawberry sunrise line but all Shiro could imagine was a mighty winged figure flying up, silhouetted by the sun, glimmering with power and grace. There was something else to that vision, a touch he knew to be Black's but she did have a tendency to be cryptic.

_Feel like I'm finally unbroken_  
_Oh, now I'm back from the dead_  
_My strength back and confidence growing_  
_Out of my way!_  
_Cause I'm armed and ready!_  
_Armed and ready!_  
_Ready! Armed and ready!_  
_I'm ready! Armed and ready!_  
_Ready! Ready! Armed and ready!_

There was a second of silence before the station went back to static.

Shiro leaned back, taking a deep breath.

"That was a thing." He said to no one.

Still, there was a power in the song that apparently reflected his soul. A power that told him now was the time to fight. To strike back full force and to never ever fall. The Paladins, and all the innocent lives they liberated from the Galra, should be the ones left standing when Zarkon is defeated. And then....

What then?

With the past behind them, what would happen then?

The Black Lion gave him a mental nudge, assuring him they'd figure out what to do in a time of peace later, but now was the time for bed. And yeah, even after that high energy song, Shiro felt tired and ready for some shut eye.

Once in bed, and once again checking that everything was just fine in the Castle, Shiro looked at his arm and clenched it, knowing that the very weapon the Galra gave him would be the weapon to stop them.

He closed his eyes and was ready to drift to sleep.

......

............

..................

"Oh my god it was a pun." Shiro shot up, looking at his prosthetic hand and remembering the somewhat strange emphasis on hands in the song.

And wings. He wondered why the Black Lion focused on wings, but figured that was because, well, they were giant magical robot lions that were each big enough to be a spaceship of their own.


	7. This Promise To You

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *deep breath*
> 
> *screams into the void*
> 
> ENJOY!

Shiro woke up to Ryou's smiling face. He smiled back tiredly. He was getting better sleep now, despite a few hiccups.

"Happy birthday Taka," Ryou smiled and planted a kiss on Shiro's forehead.

"Happy birthday Ryou," Shiro returned the kiss, planting it on Ryou's cheek as he sat up.

Breakfast in bed was always a wonderful way to start the day, especially with a good book, soaking up the morning sun with a nice cup of coffee made specifically to their taste.

"Oh wow you're actually drinking coffee?" Shiro smirked as he saw that the liquid energy in Ryou's cup was actually coffee and not just a cup full of sugar.

"Haha, haha. Ha." Ryou fake laughed. "Says you. Yours is mostly milk."

"My muscles are dumb, not my bones." Shiro shrugged a reply, enjoying his milk coffee that actually may have been more milk than coffee.

Downstairs, among the few boxes that had still yet to be dusted from and unpacked, Keith and Kosmo seemed to be, gently, arguing about something. For the record, it seemed Kosmo was winning.

"For the love of-" Keith pinched the bridge of his nose. "They are not dogs, Kosmo! You like bones! Not them!"

"Yo I'd like some bones," Ryou interrupted, while Shiro yawned and headed to the kitchen. "Been needing some new taiko sticks."

"Wouldn't animal bones be, you know, bad?" Keith raised an eyebrow. "Like, practicality wise, won't they be brittle?"

"Depends on the bones." Shiro said, half acknowledging an old memory of an extremely tough and bloody battle that he distinctly remembered being annoying amidst the whole terror of it.

"Oh." Keith said, narrowing his eyes at Kosmo who made a smug little bark. "Happy birthday by the way." He picked up two little bags and gave each twin one.

This felt... nice, Shiro thought. For a second, this was normal. And it was. This was the new normal for them. Sure, there was one less member of the household, but.... Shiro had long made peace with that development. But today wasn't the day for that type of thinking. Today was a joyous day, celebrating another year of life and hopefully many more to come.

"Haha!" Ryou hooted as he opened his gift, which looked to be a plain white mug with an engineer related joke written on it. "Dumb puns! I love it!"

Keith smiled and looked to Shiro a bit expectantly.

Shiro opened his gift, and it was a set of dog tags with both Voltron's emblem, and the Black Lion's personal emblem.

He smiled at it.

"Thanks Keith," Shiro said as he slipped on the dog tags.

At the Garrison, there was the usual hustle and bustle, this time whoever knew what the day was would give them a happy birthday and in Ryou's case-

"Happy birthday Professor!" His class surprised him with a whole party and Shiro could only watch as his brother was whisked away by them, leaving him to face the wave of birthday wishes and gifts on his own.

"Whoa whoa whoa whoa!" Lance had suddenly appeared in front of him, blocking the way to his office. "Where do you think you're going?"

"To my office." Shiro raised his eyebrow. "To get to work."

"Uh no," Pidge appeared behind him. "You are going to enjoy your birthday away from work." She started pushing him though there was only so much her almost five foot even frame could do against his six foot four body.

"Guys, come on." Shiro insisted. "It's just another day."

"Correction! It's your day!" Lance exclaimed.

"And Ryou's," Pidge added.

"And maybe the clone bros but apparently that's another story because they technically were born like a few months ago-BUT!" Lance brought back the hype after that short tanget. "Today is all about you!"

"And Ryou." Pidge added. Again.

He shook his head, smiling because he knew there was no winning here. "Alright alright, where to first?"

"Glad you asked oh wonderful and awesome leader of Voltron-" Lance popped out a similar set of dog tags from inside his shirt, revealing that most likely everyone on the team had them. "Keith already took care of the first thing, breakfast in bed, and I'm honestly surprised he didn't burn anything."

The first stop, or rather second, was the garden, where his mother was chatting up Romelle and already he knew what they were talking about, considering Romelle's very flustered expression.

"Honestly Mrs. Shirogane, Ryou's-well-it's-we're not-" Romelle was fumbling with her words and needed an out badly.

"Hey speaking of Ryou I think he and his class have room for one more," Shiro gently got her going in the right direction because in all honesty, anywhere else would probably be better for her.

"O-oh! Okay!" Romelle gave him a thankful look as she rushed away.

His mother pouted a bit but smiled, reaching up to cup Shiro's cheeks in her hands.

"You two used to fit in my arms so perfectly," she said softly. "Where did the time go?"

"To where it always goes." Shiro smiled back, speaking in the language his parents taught him and his brother so long ago. "With the moon and the stars, where hopes and dreams are on the tails of comets."

She nodded. "Let's go get your brother. Your father has a surprise for the two of you."

Shiro nodded in return.

He remembered that he hadn't celebrated with his parents in a while. Distance was a factor, but they always called and would send gifts one way or another. As a matter of fact, after a certain point in time, their birthday had became less of a party and more of just an acknowledgement that another year had gone by for them.

"Oh and mom," Shiro said as they made their way to one of the hangars.

"Hm?" She looked up at him.

"Please stop with the grandkids thing." Shiro said a bit sternly. "I know you mean well but we'll get around to it."

"Hmm." She hummed.

"Mom please." Shiro clapped his hands and bowed as much as he comfortably could while walking.

"Alright alright," she waved. "I'll ease up on it. But you do agree that they get along well, right?"

"Ah, well." Shiro thought about it. Ryou and Romelle were plenty friendly with each other. "I guess so. As much as I tell myself I'm over it I'm not in the right mindset to be the judge of romantic relationships."

"I told you Adam wasn't your speed," his mother scolded a little, though there was some sadness in her tone as well. "He tried to reign in something that's meant to be free."

"Mom," Shiro groaned a little, though in the end, she was right. They'd been arguing a bit more around that time and Kerberos was the final straw. He had hoped it didn't come to that but...

"TAKA!" Ryou's screeching was the first thing he heard as soon as they entered the hangar. The second thing was the rushed pitter patter of Ryou's feet as he ran towards him, his shoes squeaking horribly as he slid to a stop and grabbing Shiro for extra support.

Shiro looked over to where his father was and he did a quick double take when he saw what exactly his father was standing next too. His eyes went wide with wonder and excitement.

"Are those-!?"

"Yeah!"

"Ohmygodohmygodohmygod!" Shiro bounced on his heels.

"Told you they'd like 'em," his father smiled proudly towards his mother.

"Hmmm."

Two shiny new personal hover bikes, one silver, one gold.

"Carbon fiber frame for speed-!"

"With supercapacitors for fast charging and high power!"

The twins were circling their presents like sharks and their parents couldn't help but smile brightly at that, especially once they started chattering in their secret little twin language.

"It's not much, especially compared to those big cats," their father let out a little sigh. "But you two deserve something nice. I mean, you saved the universe-"

"Multiverse, Asa dear." She corrected.

"Right right." He smiled but then whistled. "That's a lot of saving."

Shiro felt a tug on his mind at that. Black was a little jealous, but he mentally assured her that she was faster and stronger and whatnot but sometimes he wanted to feel the wind on his face and how rude he'd be to not make use of his father's gift.

Ryou was clapping and making excited whines.

"Joyride?" Shiro looked up to him.

"Yeeesss." Ryou hissed, eyes still hungry with anticipation as he lightly stroked his bike. "I wanna hear this baby roar."

"A-ah, boys-" Their father could already see a hundred ways this could end badly.

"Helmets." Their mother had somehow conjured up a couple helmets for them.

"Thanks Mama," Shiro quickly pecked her on the cheek as he grabbed his helmet.

"Thanks!" Ryou did too, getting the other cheek, and soon the two were scrambling to get their new rides up and running.

"Race ya 'round the Garrison!" Shiro got his started first and was already getting quite the head start.

"Oi oi oi oi oi!" Ryou yelled as he was just as quickly catching up. "No fair ya cheat!"

By the time Shiro had settled down for bed that day, he could both barely remember the rest of the day after that race and yet can recall every vivid detail.

He remembered how he and Ryou startled Kosmo, Hugs, and Muns, much to Keith and Odin's mild annoyance. He remembered how Allura and Romelle suddenly got the windswept look when they raced by. How he high fived Matt yet felt betrayed when Matt told Ryou to win. Taking the race to the Lions and weaving around their giant forms with ease as Black urged him to keep going, a little faster.

The party afterwards and how it started as a private event, with the team, the little brothers, and his parents. How Ryou's students wormed their way in because if Hunk can be there then they should too. Lotor and the Blades also got an informal invitation, where they finally got a proper introduction to Lotor's handpicked candidate for Galra leadership Hazar, who gave them intricately detailed swords.

Speaking of other presents, Ryou got earrings from Romelle, which made his mother hum thoughtfully again. Matt got Shiro a mug that when filled with a hot drink revealed constellations, supposedly to replace the one that he got him a few years back that mysteriously disappeared. Colleen made them sweaters, approved of by the rest of the Mom Club that included Krolia and Tsukiko.

How just moments ago, another completely private celebration was held that stayed private.

His mother held the two of them, singing softly, and insisted on tucking them into bed despite them also insisting that as grown men they could tuck themselves in but then again they wouldn't mind all things considered.

"Taka," Ryou's voice was so quiet, it was almost lost in the ambient sounds of night.

"Hm?" Shiro didn't have to move himself too much. In the time it took for their mother to leave, content and trusting the two of them wouldn't disappear the second she turned her back and closed the door, the twins had squirmed into each other's arms.

Ryou stayed silent and huddled closer, letting Shiro get a strong whiff of the oily, dusty, smell that was his hair.

Shiro smiled silently, hugging Ryou just a little closer in response.

And in that moment, the only things that existed in the cool late winter night, ever so slightly warm as spring was ready to creep in, and completely real were Takashi Shirogane, his younger twin by only two minutes Ryou Shirogane, and the tiniest of spaces between them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "All Our Days" is quite the feels song. Sad feels? Gotcha covered whether you like it or not. Happy feels? You'll still be crying but at least your heart isn't on a stomped on mess on the floor.
> 
> Or maybe it is, I don't know.
> 
> From day one, the twins are there for each other, and the universe itself will fall to ruin before it tries to keep them apart.


End file.
